Finals and Failures

Roberts ends 7-year run with IU \nLate in IU's win against Purdue at Assembly Hall, many Hoosier fans were introduced to a nickname that's been around for years.\nWhen Assembly Hall public address announcer Chuck Crabb announced senior Mike Roberts' name when Roberts entered the game, Crabb said, "The boss -- Mike Roberts."\nNot "The Boss" Bruce Springsteen, not "The Boss" Tony Danza, but "The Boss" Mike Roberts? \n"I like Bruce Springsteen's music, but there's no connection there," Roberts said. "He's the millionaire boss so he's the real deal."\nRoberts, who said he verbally committed to IU in October of 1998, will play his last regular season home game Saturday against Northwestern. If the Hoosiers fail to make the NCAA Tournament and end up in the NIT, Roberts could play at Assembly Hall again.\nThe nickname originated in Roberts' early days as a Hoosier. After committing in 1998, Roberts went to prep school in New Hampshire before coming to IU in 2000. \nWhen he was working out with the Hoosiers prior to his playing days at IU, then-player and current administrative assistant Dane Fife gave Roberts a hard time, the senior said.\n"He always bossed me around," Roberts said. "I'd always, not really talk back to him, but just give (Fife) crap and say 'whatever you say, boss.' He started calling me that and that's been my nickname ever since."\nFife said Roberts called him and everybody else "boss."\n"So I one day just got tired of being called boss and just decided to throw it back in his face," Fife said. "And I guess the name stuck."\nRoberts has stuck around through it all. He was here when former coach Bobby Knight was fired. He was here when IU coach Mike Davis led the Hoosiers to the NCAA Tournament's final game. He was here when the Hoosiers didn't have a winning record last season.\nLast year provided some of his worst memories of his playing days at IU, Roberts said.\n"I try to forget the numbers at this point honestly," Roberts said. "We lost a bunch of home games here that could've gotten us into the NIT or NCAA. Obviously, my first three years before that we'd been really successful in playing for an NCAA bid. (Last year) was really frustrating and disheartening."\nRoberts hoped to contribute more in his fifth and final year, but he hasn't seen the floor much. Roberts has played in just 11 of the Hoosiers' 26 games -- averaging five minutes per outing. The Purdue game, where Roberts scored two points, was the last contest where Roberts saw action.\n"Personally, this year has kind of been a frustrating year in terms of what I've been able to contribute, but that's just how life goes," Roberts said.\nLife has taken Roberts from growing up in Terre Haute, then moving to Eugene, Ore., where he played high school ball. Then, he moved back across the country to New Hampshire where he played one year at New Hampton Prep School before coming to IU.\nPat Knight, Bobby Knight's son, was the IU assistant who mainly recruited Roberts. Roberts committed to the Hoosiers in 1998, knowing he would spend the next school year in prep school.\nRoberts said he only spoke with Bobby Knight five or six times on the phone during the recruiting process. Roberts credited Knight and his staff for sticking with him when they could have withdrawn their scholarship offer, but thankfully, Roberts said, he had a good senior year and played well at prep school.\n"Everything about Coach Knight -- I liked him," Roberts said. "He was honest with me. He didn't promise me much. He told me if you go to prep school, you get stronger, you work hard, and we'll give you a scholarship. He did that and held up his end of the bargain." \n"I respect him a lot and I'm obviously thankful because he's the one who got me a scholarship here."\nOn the team, Roberts said he gets along with fellow seniors Mark Johnson and Ryan Tapak the best. He was also good friends with Kyle Hornsby -- who graduated two years ago. Roberts also lived with Tom Coverdale for two years.\nRoberts has already earned his undergraduate degree as a LAMP major, which is a liberal arts and management degree, and is currently working on a master's degree in sports administration. No. 33 said he will probably be in Bloomington next year trying to finish his master's degree.\nAfter that, who knows, Roberts said.\n"There's a good chance I might like to coach," Roberts said. "If I get that master's in sports administration done, being like a high school A.D. and a coach or something like that."\nIU coach Mike Davis, who said he calls Roberts "boss" sometimes, said he thinks Roberts could be a really good basketball coach. His impact might not be seen in the games but behind the scenes in practice.\n"He's really good in practice," Davis said. "As far as understanding and knowing what you're trying to do, he's the perfect guy for that.\n"Hopefully next year he can be a graduate assistant for us."\nIf Roberts decides to be a coach, there's a chance he could be "the boss" of his own team one day. \nRight now though, he and fellow seniors Johnson and Tapak are just trying to do everything they can to help the Hoosiers earn a tournament berth.\n"It seems like it's flown by," Roberts said. "I can't believe how quickly it's gone. Hopefully we can end it on a big, Big Ten win and go out on a good note."\n-- Contact Staff Writer John Rodgers at jprodger@indiana.edu.